BLUEPRINT FOR AN IPO -

An initial public offering (IPO) is a transaction in which a company’s securities are offered to the public for the first time. Companies go public to raise capital to fuel growth, pay down debt, and provide liquidity to shareholders, among other things. Going public is a corporate milestone, particularly in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act era of corporate reform.

An IPO is at the same time exciting and very demanding on a company’s management team. IPO candidates face for the first time the expansive regulatory scheme administered by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and must deal with corporate governance processes that are much different than what they had as private companies. Although all issuers and offerings are different, the basic process of going public remains relatively constant...